Can Nurses become great Presidents too?

5 Common Qualities of Presidents and Nurses

Abraham Lincoln, Xi Jinping, Angela Merkel, Franklin Roosevelt, George Washington—These are just some of the most famous Presidents and great leaders in the world.

Let us see what are some common leadership qualities that good Presidents appear which are also similar qualities for good nurses:

1.Effective communication skills.

Great leaders of nations must be able to connect with their subordinates and citizens, and ensure their vision,messages,strategies are received “on point.”

In nursing, the ability to communicate and connect with patients as well as with health care professionals can help build relationships, prevent mistakes in order to provide the highest level of care possible.

2.Crisis management skills.

All leaders should possess this quality and aim to improve conflict resolution and crisis management skills as this role deals with running a whole country. Meanwhile, nurses always deal with difficult and life-threatening situations with patients. Nurses especially those nurses in-charged should always be prepared to review and practice the facility’s crisis readiness plan with all nursing staff.

3.Character, Accountability and Integrity.

Both need to have good character , great sense of accountability and solid integrity to be effective. They are respected and listened to by the people they serve.

Leaders of the nation are expected to be morally accountable and responsible for their judgment and actions. Nurses are too, they practice with moral integrity and have a deep sense of responsibility and accountability according to what they believe is the right thing to do.

4.Care.

The strongest and most effective leaders care not just about the position and being “the President”, but about the people they govern, “the common good”. In nursing, one is not effective and would not survive the profession if you are not “caring”. Nursing is synonymous to caring, so to become a good nurse entails being compassionate, caring and empathetic to your patients.

5.Delegation skills and Empowering

Great leaders make their associates/subordinates feel emboldened, empowered and powerful. They assigned crucial tasks and trust their employees to deliver. They do not make them feel diminished and powerless. Credits are given when they are due. Same thing with the nurses who are responsible in delegating specific nursing tasks to specific assistants accordingly: based on patient needs, scope of practice, availability of staff and scope of functions.

These are just some of the similar great qualities between a statesman and a nurse.

So, the next time you think about changing a career, maybe you might consider a profession like…being a President? 🙂